Emotionless
by sapphire-hummingbird
Summary: While Kisame longs for Itachi, Itachi simply seems... emotionless. Rated M just to be on the safe side for future chapters as there is likely to be violence and sexual content. Contains one spoiler about Itachi.
1. The Inn

I haven't written in a long time, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it pretty quick! The first couple chapters may be short, as I really should be studying... But I'll try my best to keep 'er going!

Itachi lay across Kisame's chest, his arm slung over the blue skin and his delicate chin perched on his arm. He stared intently at the tiny scales covering Kisame. His eyes narrowed slightly, finding it difficult to focus. He brought his other arm out from underneath him and ran his fingertips ever so lightly across the skin, making Kisame shudder slightly at the gentle sensation. He found that stroking downwards, the surface was smooth yet hard, while it was sharp and rough going against the direction of the scales. Itachi's thumb nail came to rest on one scale in particular. He slid his nail under the edge of the sharp, tooth-like surface. With a flick of his thumb, he pried the scale up and it broke. Kisame flinched with a sharp intake of breath, looking at Itachi with slight annoyance. A tiny speck of blood appeared where the scale had been removed.

"What did you do that for?" Kisame asked in a low voice, trying not to sound too annoyed, lest he anger Itachi.

"I was just wondering," he replied quietly, "What would it feel like if I got a knife and scaled you like a fish?"

With a swift movement, Itachi had picked up a kunai from the pile of their clothes and proceeded to run the flat edge slowly over Kisame's skin. Kisame's eyes widened. He could never be sure when Itachi was serious. On top of that, Itachi had hit a nerve when it came to comparing Kisame to a fish. With a strong arm, he pushed Itachi's body away and slid out from underneath him into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. He faced away from Itachi, but looked at him over his shoulder, his eyes dangerous.

"I'm guessing it would feel the same as if I were to skin you like a little pig," he growled.

Kisame turned away, standing up and reaching for his pants. Itachi's long silence started to make Kisame nervous. There were very few people that could make him as uneasy as Itachi could. He hurriedly put his clothes back on, slinging his akatsuki cloak over his shoulders.

"We need to be heading out. I'll go pay the bill."

He left the room swiftly, heading to the front desk of the small inn in which they had spent the night. As he shut the door behind him, he paused for a moment to sigh. Why was Itachi always so cold toward him? Even after they share a great night together, he remains so detached. It was to be expected, however. If Itachi could be emotionless enough to slaughter his entire family, leaving his younger brother orphaned and alone, then how could Kisame expect much more from him? Still, the two had been partners for so long. Years later, their intimacy remained purely physical. Kisame had never expected to fall so hard for Itachi, longing for more than just his unfeeling touch.

The lobby was empty. Kisame chose to leave their fee on the counter rather than wait for the innkeeper to appear. He left the building to wait outside for Itachi. He put on his bamboo hat, quickly removing it when he discovered that it was raining. It had been weeks since it had rained last and Kisame wanted to enjoy it while it lasted. He turned his face toward the clouds, letting the downpour soak his blue hair. A moment was all he needed to put thoughts of Itachi out of his mind.

The sound of the inn's door opening in closing brought Kisame back to reality. Itachi stood beside him, letting out a groan, presumably unhappy with the weather. Kisame ran a hand through his hair so that it stood up again, rather than laying flat from the water. The two exchanged no words, but proceeded to set off at an easy pace down the dirt road. Puddles were quickly forming large potholes, deeper than they appeared. While Itachi was careful to avoid these for the sake of the cleanliness of his clothes, Kisame simply walked straight, ignoring the growing pools of muddy water. Kisame's lidless eyes remained fixed on Itachi. This was how they usually walked, Kisame watching Itachi while his head remained facing forward and Itachi unable to see well enough to notice.


	2. The Lake

Ok, I forgot to include this in the last chapter, but I don't own Naruto or any of the characters, as I'm sure you're all well-aware. This chapter is a little violent, but nothing too brutal. I guess I forgot the warnings too. This story contains (or will contain) yaoi, violence, some language, and sexual content. I haven't decided whether the sexual content will be graphic, or simply implied, as it was in the first chapter. Comments and criticisms are completely appreciated, as well as any suggestions you could think of. Like I said, I haven't written in a while, so I'm looking for any opportunity to improve.

The road stretched for miles in front and miles behind. The rain continued, casting a misty shadow over the low hills and bouncing up from the wet ground like drops on a hot skillet. There was nothing in any direction except for the path directly below, making it the only mark of civilization in the area.

Itachi loathed the rain. His clothes were sodden and heavy, his long hair clung to his face and neck, and his ninja-style footwear sqelched with every step. He walked quickly, eager to reach the next pit stop. Kisame took one step for every two of Itachi's making his pace appear much more relaxed. Their reactions to the dampness couldn't have been more different. Kisame felt blissfully relaxed, despite sensing the tension in Itachi's movements.

After hours of walking, however, the monotony had become unbearable. A lake came into view after a while, off the road a hundred feet or so. Kisame stopped suddenly. Itachi kept walking, unaware of the change until he realized he could only hear his own footsteps. He paused as well, turning to face Kisame, a questioning look on his face.

Kisame grinned at his companion and glanced over at the deep lake.

"Itachi, how about a swim?"

Itachi seemed suprised at the suggestion. With water all around, the last thing he wanted to do was get any wetter than he already was. He sighed however, well aware that the weeks of being on the move had started to get to Kisame. Maybe they could both do with a break. As long as they reached the next small town by nightfall, he supposed he could withstand the rain a little longer. He gave a subtle nod in Kisame's direction to indicate his approval.

After a moment of weighing the pros and cons of his next move, Kisame strode briskly toward Itachi. Itachi responded with a slightly puzzled look on his face. Kisame proceeded to grab Itachi firmly by the wrist and literally drag him in the direction of the lake. Itachi tried in vain to pry the strong hand off his arm as he dug his heels into the soggy dirt, which only gave way. He had a pretty good idea what Kisame was planning and was determined to avoid his fate. As much as he struggled and pulled against the well-muscled arm forcing him toward the lake, he couldn't break the grip.

"Kisame! Let go! I don't want to... you can't make me..." he yelled to his companion. His attempts to sound threatening quickly turned into a whining, pleading voice.

"Think again, Uchiha!" Kisame replied with a loud laugh, "When's the last time you did anything fun?"

When they reached the deep lake, Kisame dove in headfirst, jerking Itachi in by the arm quite painfully. He maintained his iron grip on his partner's thin-boned wrist as he swam straight down at a speed only he could achieve in the water. The frigid water felt refreshing as it glided smoothly over his scaled skin. The only drag he felt was from his clothing and from his struggling victim. He hoped Itachi wouldn't be to mad at him for his impulsive actions.

Within 20 seconds, he had pulled Itachi at least 80 feet under the dark surface of the water. This felt so natural to Kisame, but as soon as he stopped, he realized how panicked Itachi's movements seemed. He instantly let go of Itachi, allowing him to rise quickly toward the rippling light from the sky. Kisame followed him to make sure he hadn't hurt him. As soon as Itachi's face broke the surface, he broke into a painful coughing fit. His usually calm face was contorted in panic and pain. He swam quickly to the shore as Kisame followed behind, a concerned look replacing his grin from earlier. Itachi dragged himself halfway out of the water onto the grainy shore, flipping onto his back and closing his eyes, still breathing hard. Kisame stood in the shallow water and walked over, sitting down next to the smaller man.

"I thought... you would hold your breath. Itachi..." Kisame knew he'd hurt Itachi somehow, but he wasn't sure what was wrong, specifically.

"I did," he choked, "It was too deep. My ears."

Kisame realized he had dragged Itachi down too fast to allow his ears to adjust to the pressure. He hadn't thought of that. The situation had played out much better in his head.

"Itachi, I'm s-... are your ears ok now?" He had almost apologized, but that wasn't something he could easily bring himself to do, even for Itachi.

Crimson eyes flashed open and before Kisame had time to react, Itachi was on top of him, straddling his hips, a kunai to his neck. Kisame gasped in suprise. Even after working alongside Itachi for so long, his abilities never ceased to suprise him. Kisame turned his head to the side slightly and away from the blade, only exposing his throat even more. His scales may be tough, but they really only proved to protect him from small scrapes and would do nothing against a sharp blade.

"Don't touch me again," Itachi growled at the man completely at his mercy. And he could be merciless. He pressed the edge hard into the skin of the one who had hurt him. Kisame winced slightly as a thin cut opened in the wake of the kunai, blood starting to pool in the split of his skin.

Itachi paused for a moment, his eyebrows coming together in a frown. With his free hand, he rubbed one ear."

"Say something."

"Say what, Itachi?"

Itachi remained distracted for a couple seconds more.

"It sounds muffled. My ears are ringing."

A horrifying thought crossed through Itachi's mind. What if his hearing were permanently impaired? Touch and sound were his keenest senses at this point, and he relied on them heavily. His heart raced at the idea, and the fear was evident on his fine features. Kisame started to open his mouth to ask what was wrong, when Itachi's momentary fear was instantly transformed into anger. In a flash of metal, the kunai was moved from Kisame's neck to the slits beneath his eyes.

"Open your mouth and I'll slit your gills open," Itachi growled, then adding, "Like a fish."

Kisame promptly shut his mouth as his breathing quickened. It was rare to see Itachi this angry, but it never ended well for the one with whom he was angry.

"While I'm at it, I could pry your beady eyes out too," he spat, rage evident in his tone, "Then you'll know how I feel. I can't breathe underwater, Kisame. And I can't see like you do."

The last sentence was whispered, revealing his fear at the loss of his eyesight, and maybe even his hearing, after his unexpected deep-diving. He applied slight pressure with the knife to the gills just above Kisame's cheekbone. Blue hands were pinned under Itachi's knees, proving useless in defense. Kisame flinched away, his body squirming underneath Itachi.

"Please, you're hurting me."

"I guess what they say is true then. When attacked by a shark, you're supposed to go for the gills, as they're the most sensitive."

Kisame clenched his pointed teeth as the pressure was increased. He looked up pleadingly, feeling more helpless than he had ever felt with anyone except Itachi.

After what felt like ages, the kunai was removed from Kisame's face and Itachi stood up, walking a few paces away and stopping. Kisame breathed an audible sigh of relief before putting a hand over his neck to stop the bleeding from the cut he had sustained. It hurt, but he'd endured much worse injuries. He sat up and glanced over at the brooding figure standing in the still-sodden Akatsuki cloak.


	3. The Sand

I got a review! Thank you! Here's the next chapter. I might make the one after this a little more light-hearted, just to mix things up a bit.

Their little detour had cost them time. The sky was dimming, the orange of the sun swirling with the deep blue of the approaching night. The stars were not yet visible, but it would be less than an hour until dark. It was still a number of miles between the lake and the next town. On a normal trip, it might make sense to keep walking in order to reach the town, allowing the luxury of spending the second half of the night in a comfortable bed. However, for the two Akatsuki members, it was important to maintain a consistant travelling schedule: settle down as the sun sets, and rise early to continue the next day. This was important in order to keep up a decent pace.

This consistency meant that the two had to spend the night by the lake. This wasn't too unusual, but it would've been much easier to be sleeping in seperate rooms after a a fight like they'd experienced that evening. On top of that, there was no cover from the trees. The rain had mostly subsided, but a heavy mist blanketed the area.

Without speaking a word to Kisame, Itachi prepared their simple camp. The first thing he started on was lighting a fire, as it would help make the night more comfortable and a little less damp. He piled up some soggy wood on the sandy shore.

Kisame frowned slightly as he lay down a thin sheet upon which they would both sleep. Both travelled very light, excluding Kisame's huge sword. Travelling light, however, meant that they would definitely be feeling every rock hidden in the sand. Itachi was still wearing his cloak for warmth, so Kisame decided to lay his own cloak down on Itachi's side of the sheet, in the hope that it would keep his partner a little warmer once they both settled down for the night. He was feeling a mixture of emotions at this point. Part of him regretted hurting Itachi, knowing he had probably driven Itachi further away, if only for a little while.

The other part was angry at Itachi's reaction. He was quite certain that the ringing Itachi was hearing was temporary, yet Itachi had attacked him. Every time something like this happened, Kisame resolved to not let himself be pushed around by someone so much smaller. It was a definite blow to his ego to be pinned to the ground, at the mercy of someone who probably weighed half of what he did. His cheeks burned slightly as he thought about the humiliation. He was strong enough, he should be able to defend himself from his own partner. Even if Itachi was a faster, smarter, and probably more skilled fighter, Kisame needed to stand up to him more. If Itachi had him in a vulnerable position, he should maintain his usual cocky disposition, rather than degrading himself by asking Itachi to stop. He replayed the situation in his head, replacing his slightly more pitiful statements with more aggressive words. This worked in his mind, but he sighed knowing that next time would probably play out in a similar fashion: Itachi being in complete control and Kisame making an idiot out of himself.

A low word was heard, followed by a flash of light, making Kisame jump.

"Katon, goukakyuu no jutsu."

Within an instant, the sodden wood had been replaced by a roaring fire. Itachi edged as close as he could to the fire, opening his cloak to allow the heat to warm his body. Steam started to rise as his clothes slowly dried.

Kisame realized he should dry the ground-sheet and his own cloak if they both wanted to stay warm. He gathered a couple long sticks and cautiously walked over to Itachi. So far, he had been avoiding the moody glares from his partner, but this was important. He drove the sticks into the ground to form a sort of stand over which he draped the fabrics. While he was over here, he might as well sit with Itachi. He moved over to Itachi's other side and sat down heavily, taking care not to sit too close, lest he make Itachi uncomfortable.

"Um,"

"What?" came a stern reply.

The harshness in Itachi's tone made Kisame's voice quaver for a moment. "How are your ears?"

"Sore." Itachi stared into the fire rather than at his companion.

"And your hearing?"

"Normal."

Kisame was relieved. Maybe Itachi was still mad. A glance at Itachi glaring angrily at the fire confirmed this. At least he was ok though. Kisame could deal a lot better with Itachi when he was angry as a result of being angry earlier (Kisame liked to call this 'residual mad-ness') than when he had a distinct and still-present reason for his anger. He decided to push his luck a little more in talking to Itachi, hoping for more than monosyllabic responses. Also, he was motivated by his growling stomach. Their last meal had been the previous night in the inn.

"Are you hungry?"

"Yes."

"What are we going to eat?

"Fish."

He frowned at this answer, before realizing that Itachi was serious, rather than just being spiteful.

"Do you think there are any fish in this lake?"

Itachi simply shrugged.

Despite his hunger, Kisame was a little hesitant to get his clothes wet again, now that they had just dried. He didn't mind the feeling of wet clothes, but he knew that if they stayed wet, they would start to smell and would probably chaffe. But, if it made Itachi a little less moody, maybe it was worth it.

Itachi looked up as Kisame's black undershirt was dropped next to him. His shoes, black pants, forehead protector, and other various articles of clothing followed until Kisame was standing next to Itachi, in the cold and damp, in nothing more than his boxers; black to match his other clothes. Itachi almost smiled at the ridiculous sight. To add to the absurdity, Kisame had a ridiculous grin plastered across his face. Kisame's bluish skin stood in contrast to their dark surroundings. He strode swiftly toward the glassy water while Itachi watched from the safety of the fireside.

A dive made Kisame disappear beneath the dark surface with only a few ripples. It suprised Itachi how graceful Kisame could be when he tried. A few minutes passed, and Itachi started to wonder whether, after all, it was true that Kisame could breathe under water. He'd only seen Kisame remain under for a few minutes at a time, so he wasn't sure whether his gills were functional, or simply unusual facial markings.

Twenty minutes passed. Itachi started to worry a little. He convinced himself that he was only curious about how long Kisame could stay under, rather than concerned for his well-being. Even if he was concerned, it was probably be because it would affect their mission objectives.

Kisame's head broke the surface with a splashing sound. He looked around to find the light of the fire, and swam in that direction. As he emerged, he brought up with him four large lake fish. He was about to lay them on the ground when a glare from Itachi reminded him that Itachi would not like his fish to be sandy. Kisame picked up a few sticks from the ones he'd gathered earlier, spearing the fish and propping them up over the fire to cook. He started to shake the water out of his hair.

"Kisame!"

He stopped when he realized he was getting Itachi wet.

Black boxers were added to the arrangement of things to dry as Kisame sat down. Itachi raised an eyebrow at his companion's choice to sit down naked in the sand. He glanced over at Kisame's muscular form, but snapped his head back as Kisame caught him looking.

He wished he could wipe the arrogant smirk off that blue face.

"Why so interested, Itachi-san? It's nothing you haven't seen before."

Itachi's eyes narrowed slightly, but Kisame maintained his grin. Itachi used the method he'd found most effective in shutting that mouth. He passed Kisame three of the cooked fish.


	4. The Cloak

I lied. This chapter isn't light-hearted. Maybe next time. :)

Thanks so much for reviewing! Critisism is also highly appreciated. My previous writing experience is limited to science reports and articles, hehe. So let me know if my writing starts getting too technical and too caught up in insignificant details. Or, if I start writing in passive voice, then I know I've been working too hard!

The rest of the night proceeded in silence as both men at their meal. One large fish was more than enough food for Itachi, while Kisame picked the remaining three clean to the bone. Kisame leaned back on his elbows, watching the fire slowly become reduced to embers. After a while, Itachi quietly rose and lifted the sheet off the sticks, letting Kisame's clothing fall to the ground, much to Kisame's annoyance. He walked a few paces from the fire and spread the sheet out, before lying down himself. Kisame watched Itachi from the fireside, but decided to wait a while before joining him. He still had much to think about.

He wished that Itachi was easier to read. Kisame's actions and words were always straight-forward, with obvious meaning behind them. Itachi, on the other hand, spoke with much less expression. The pale face seemed a mask behind which mysterious emotions brewed. Or, he may not even have many emotions. Maybe he was as blank as his face. Itachi seemed to only speak when necessary, and just enough to convey his point without giving any additional information. This frustrated Kisame constantly. Life would be so much easier if he could just take a small peak into the hidden psyche of Uchiha Itachi.

Now that he started thinking about it, Kisame really didn't know much about Itachi's past. He did know that Itachi was considered a prodigy in the hidden leaf village, becoming leader of his ANBU squad at a very young age. He knew that Itachi had murdered his best friend in order to attain the mangekyou sharingan, then slaughtered his entire family, leaving his younger brother the sole survivor of the clan. Even still, Kisame didn't know the real reason behind all this. Why leave his sibling alive? Maybe something had been written in Konoha's archives about the incident. As soon as this thought crossed his mind, he became angry at the idea that villagers in Konoha may know more about Itachi than he, the man's Akatsuki partner. Although he hated to admit it, Kisame was also jealous of Sasuke. Having grown up with the enigmatic man, the boy must have seen sides of Itachi that few others had seen. How could some little brat be so priviledged to have known young Itachi?

Kisame tried to clear his mind, otherwise he wouldn't be able to sleep. He looked at the fire and realized even the embers had stopped glowing. It was starting to get chilly. He stood up and looked down at his sandy clothes. With a grumble, he picked each piece of fabric up, dusted it off, and put it on. They felt a little itchy. He picked up his cloak and crept over to Itachi. His companion seemed to be asleep, although it could be hard to tell.

With a gentle care that was quite uncharacteristic of him, he lay his own cloak over Itachi in the hope of keeping the mist off him.

He settled down on the other side of the sheet, facing away. Without the cloak, he was dressed only in pants and his sleeveless shirt, but he tried not to let the cold bother him. As he was just about to drift off to sleep, Kisame felt something warm against his broad back. Turning his head to look over his shoulder, he saw that a sleeping Itachi had inched close enough that he lay with his back against Kisame's. Kisame smiled slightly to himself as he let his eyes close.


	5. The IceCream

I'm going home for the weekend, so I don't know whether that means I'll have more time to write, or I'll be too preoccupied. So, I might not update until monday or tuesday.

"Wake up. We're leaving."

Kisame sat up suddenly at the words that had disrupted his sleep. He groaned, realizing he'd been awoken from an especially good dream. He put his palms to his forehead as he took a moment to try and remember what his dream involved, but the details simply slipped away.

He slowly opened his eyes to the sharp and invasive sunlight. As soon as he'd had time to adjust to the brightness, he looked around, only to find himself alone. He leapt to his feet and spun on the spot, confused, as his mind wasn't fully awake yet. Itachi was standing in the distance, a black figure barely discernable in the slowly disappating mist. In a bit of a panic, Kisame grabbed his crumpled cloak and searched for the ground sheet. Itachi must've taken it already. He wondered how Itachi could've gotten the sheet out from under him while he slept. He didn't have much time to ponder this, however, as he noticed the silouetted figure seemed slightly further than it had a minute ago.

Kisame hurriedly put his sandals on and took off in the direction of his partner, putting on his cloak as he ran.

He growled under his breath as he caught up with Itachi, who had not only left without him, but had set a fast pace for the day. Kisame hated when Itachi left without him. It wasn't such a big deal to catch up, but it annoyed him that Itachi didn't consider him worth waiting for. It took him a second to catch his breath, but he recovered quickly and easily kept up the swift pace. He thought about last night. He had promised himself to stand up to Itachi, and here was his first chance.

Then again, you have to pick your battles, right? No point in making a fuss over nothing. Kisame decided to let it go this time. After all, he was hoping to keep Itachi in a good mood. Both stayed silent until they had reached the village.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

"I have sand in my clothes! It's scratchy. If you recall, Itachi, you dumped my clothes in the dirt."

"Then get the sand out, and quit walking like an idiot."

"I'm trying! Just give me a minute."

Kisame stopped walking and attempted to shake the grit out of his clothes. When he was satisfied, he caught up with Itachi again.

"Stop scratching. You're so crude." Itachi looked at the ground and pulled his bamboo hat further down his face, as though he was embarassed to be recognized by anyone.

Kisame stopped, but continued to fidget uncomfortably.

"Seriously, Itachi-san, can't we stop somewhere?"

"That'll only slow us down. We need to keep moving."

Kisame grumbled, "But why? We're not even on any missions right now. There's no need to rush."

Itachi stopped suddenly, and Kisame almost ran into him. He turned slowly to face the taller man, his eyes serious.

"Have you forgotten about the main objective?!"

"Eh, of course not," Kisame chuckled nervously, "I just mean we have no short-term goal, so maybe we could take it easy for a day or two."

Itachi sighed. "I suppose you're right. Just one day, though. Not two. And after that, we need to pick up the pace. Got it?"

Kisame leapt to attention, poking fun at Itachi's commanding tone. "Yessir!"

After they had found a public bathroom in which Kisame could strip down and thoroughly shake out his clothes, they spent the rest of the day relaxing, and maybe trying to have a bit of fun. At least Kisame was having fun.

Although they had passed through many towns, it was rare that they had time to browse stores or spend any money. It wasn't as though the two were especially wealthy, but the only thing using up their money was hotel rooms, so both had some cash to spare. It was Kisame's suggestion that they have some ice cream. This wasn't so much a suggestion as it was Kisame dragging Itachi by the arm to an ice cream store.

Kisame was rarely as serious as Itachi, but even Itachi was suprised by Kisame's child-like facination with the process of choosing a flavour. The shopkeeper stood well behind the counter and was obviously quite intimidated by the six-and-a-half foot shark-like man pressing his face against the glass, indecisive about what kind of ice cream he wanted.

"Itachi-san, which do you think would be good? Strawberry-chocolate or mango?"

Itachi rolled his eyes and took the initiative of making the decision. He approached the counter and said to the shopkeeper, "Two mango ice creams, please."

The smaller man's softer voice seemed to settle the shopkeepers nerves a little and he even managed a smile as he handed over the change. Seeing Kisame's wide, pointed-toothed grin at being handed a cone, however, made the man scurry to the back room while he waited for his strange customers to leave.

The two strolled down the small streets, glancing in the windows of the small but unique shops. As soon as Itachi had eaten enough of his ice cream that it wasn't in danger of dripping, he turned to Kisame.

"So, what's all the excitement about when it comes to ice cream?"

Kisame offered a joking frown. "Maybe not all of us were as privileged as Konoha ninjas. Especially the famous Uchiha clan."

Itachi scoffed. "The Land of Water is one of the more powerful nations. It couldn't have been that bad. I hear the larger towns are quite prosperous."

"Prosperous, maybe," Kisame laughed loudly, "But ninja training required a pretty spartan existance. What about you? Judging by how soft the people of _your _village are, I bet you guys had it pretty easy."

"Hardly. Missions were frequent and often dangerous." Itachi was a little irritated by Kisame's attitude toward Konoha. It was true that Itachi felt no loyalty to the village, but he didn't want Kisame thinking that he 'had it pretty easy'.

"And what about training and exams in Konoha?"

"Training was left up to us, so mine was of course rigorous. The exams were dangerous and it was not unusual for ninjas to get badly injured. When I took my Chuunin exam, two entrants were killed. And the mist village?"

"I'm sure you've heard of my village's discontinued tradition of how exams are carried out. Contestants are required to fight to the death. I passed top of my class," Kisame responded with his characteristic smirk.

"Hm, I'd forgotten your barbaric customs."

Itachi successfully ended the conversation as he finished up his cone. Kisame frowned. Itachi, of all people, didn't have much right to consider him barbaric. However, the day was going quite well and he didn't want to ruin the good mood.

"Do you want to go for ramen?" he asked.

"You just ate, Kisame. Is your appetite ever satisfied?"

"Not really. So I take your answer to mean..."

Itachi nodded. Ramen beat charred fish any day when it came to meals.


	6. The Hot Springs

Sorry it's been so long! My friend is getting me back into writing. This chapter is mostly Itachi's thoughts, but I should have one coming up soon with a little more going on. I'm writing a Heroes story with my friend -the-dramatic-harmonica which you can check out here:

.net/s/5115918/1/FastForward_20_years_past_Heroes_almost_gone

That night, the two stayed in a hotel, visiting the hotsprings out back. Itachi wanted some time to himself, so he gave Kisame the task of picking up supplies in town while he visitied the spring. No one seemed to be around as Itachi grabbed a towel, wrapping it around his thin waist while leaving his clothes folded neatly on his bedmat.

Thankfully, the stony pools were also empty. Itachi liked privacy. He dropped his towel by the water and slowly lowered himself in, taking a moment to adjust to the intense heat. Itachi untied his hair, letting it fall over his shoulders. He closed his eyes, leaning back against the rocks as the steam relaxed him. He let his usually focused mind wander.

Itachi thought about Kisame for a while. He knew the man has some kind of infatuation with him. Even though Kisame tried to hide it, it was written all over his face ever day. It made Itachi wonder if continuing their partnership and physical relationship was in the best interests of the objectives. He assured himself that he, of course, felt little attraction to the man. He took advantage of the companionship offered, and that was all.

Switching partners would not be a simple ordeal. Sifting through the other members, he wondered if any would be suitable as a replacement. Itachi would probably regret changing Kisame for someone else, as he was an effective, although too straightforward fighter. Still, if any emotions were present between them, even if they were only on Kisame's end, it could cause problems if the choice came between Itachi and the mission. Itachi knew that if he ever appeared to be in danger, Kisame would compromise the objectives. This was a risk that could not be taken.

Possible replacements: Deidara, Sasori, Hidan, or Kakuzu. Pein had his own partner, Zetsu worked best alone, and Tobi wasn't a member, as much as he wanted to be. Among those four, Deidara hated him, Sasori was a little too similar in personality, and Hidan was obnoxious. Maybe Kakuzu would be a suitable partner. Itachi had already expressed his concerns with the leader. The plan was already in action, Kisame just didn't know yet.

Itachi realized that an hour must have passed while he sat in the steaming water and he was feeling a little over heated. He stood up and hauled himself out of the water, wrapping the towel around his waist and squeezing the water out of his hair. and running his fingers through the long strands. Opening the door to the room, he found Kisame shuffling through the supplies he'd bought even though they'd already been divided between the two of them and packed. He knew Kisame was just passing time, letting Itachi have time to himself.

"I got dried noodles and stuff, but then the store closed so they kicked me out," Kisame explained.

Itachi didn't answer.

"I'm heading out to the hotsprings," Kisame stated.

Still no response. Kisame grumbled, stripping down and grabbing a towel, being less modest than Itachi, who waited to be alone before changing. He glanced over at Itachi. The younger man looked much different with his hair down, he thought to himself, heading out the door.

Itachi was asleep when he returned, looking peaceful.


End file.
